Cushioned carpeting and method of making the same



Feb. 6, 1962 H. A. REINHARDT ETAL 3,019,508

CUSHIONED CARPETING AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed 0G12. 17. 1958 @agr/Nq; Compay/VD TTORNEYS ite ttes The present invention relates to cushioned carpeting j and method of making the same. The present invention relates, more particularly, to cushioned carpeting which includes a pile fabric having a back coating and a cushion detachably attached thereto and the method of making l the same.

An object of the present invention is to provide a cushioned carpet which can be produced at low cost and which -has improved Ifeel and draping qualities. The present invention is particularly useful in attaching a cushion or pad to a back coated carpet such as a carpet of the tufted type where the pile is formed on a loosely woven fabric, such as burlap, light-weight duck or the like, with the pile elements being held or locked in place by a coating of latex or other suitable back coating compound. When a cushioning material is attached thereto in accordance with the present invention, it has been found that the thickness or weight of the layer of coating material may be reduced considerably without adversely affecting the feel or handle of the carpeting. Furthermore, this invention eliminates the need for an open mesh burlap or similar support for making a needled jute underlay separately. Hence, cushioned carpeting made in accordance with the present invention can be produced at lower cost than carpeting and cushioning when produced separately.

An important feature o-f the present invention is that the cushioning material is secured to the carpeting in such a way that it can be readily delaminated so as to permit taped or sewn seams or joints to be made between adjoining sections of cushioned carpeting made in accordance with the invention.

The incorporation of the cushioning material as part of the composite carpet structure in accordance with the present invention makes it unnecessary for the user to purchase and install cushioning material separately. In addition, when the cushioning material is formed as part of the carpeting in accordance with the present invention, it will conform accurately in size to the carpeting and its accumulated bulk and weight will resist any tendency for the carpeting to be sucked up by a vacuum cleaner. Not only does this invention provide the additional advantage of reducing the tendency of the carpet to pucker; it reduces the shrinkage normally resulting from wet shampooing of tufted products. it also enhances the drapability of the product whereby it readily and conveniently conforms to uneven surfaces.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent and better understood from the following description and the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of cushioned carpeting embodying and made in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal section view with parts broken away at different planes of the carpeting shown in FIG. 1, but on an enlarged scale;

HG. 3 is a fragmentary section view taken along the line 3 3 of FIG. 2 with parts broken away;

FIG. 4 is an end elevation illustrating a joint between two sections of the carpeting shown in FG. l;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic longitudinal sectional view of a machine for attaching the cushion to the carpeting in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the size of a needle of the machine shown in FlG. 5 in comparison with a strand of the backing material.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, there is a piece of cushioned carpeting 1u embodying the present invention and produced in accordance therewith.

The carpeting 1d, as illustrated, comprises a pile fabric of the tufted type in which pile elements in the form of stitched loops l1 are sewn on a backing 12 of loosely woven material such as burlap, lightweight duck or the like. The pile loops extend from one face of the backing and the other `face of the backing has a backcoating applied thereto. The backcoating is a relatively thin layer 13 of a latex compound or other suitable adhesive material which binds or anchors the loops 11 of the pile fabric to the backing 12.

The tufted `fabric described above is formed in the usual manner and since this procedure is well known in the art, it need not be described in detail. However, it shouid be noted that in accordance with the present invention, the backcoating 13 which is applied to the backing can be considerably thinner and lighter in weight than the backcoating usually used for tufted carpeting. For example, a backcoating weighing about l5 ounces per square yard may be employed satisfactorily in carpeting embodying the present invention as compared to a backcoating weighing about 2l ounces per square yard which is conventionally used on such fabric. The coating compounds used for this purpose represent a substantial item of cost and the reduction in the amount of the coating made possible by the present invention represents an irnportant saving.

it is desirable that the backcoating retain a rubbery or iiexible texture when it is dry so that it is not brittle or subject to crumbling during further processing of the carpeting in accordance with the present invention.

The cushioned carpeting lil* also includes a cushion or pad 14 of a fibrous material such as jute, which is attached to the rear or coated face of the backing by a needling operation in such a way that the pad can be readily stripped or delaminated from the ybacking to permit a suitable seam or joint to be formed between adjoining sections of the cushioned carpeting. One way of forming such a seam or joint is illustrated in FIG. 4 wherein the pad 14 at the adjoining edges of two sections A and B of the carpeting has been delaminated with an adhesive tape 15 applied to the rear faces of the carpeting and extending across the adjoining edges thereof. After the sea-m is formed in this manner, the pad may then be replaced in its initial position.

As is shown best in FIG. 5, the needling operation by which the pad or cushion 14 is attached to the coated pile yfabric may be carried out on a conventional needling machine of the type ordinarily used for forming pads or cushions of jute or similar brous material. ln this machine, the tufted pile fabric with the backcoating thereon is carried in inverted position by a belt 1d and passes between a pair of perforated needle plates 17. Before enlaces the pile Ifabric reaches the needle plates, a bat of fibrous material from which the pad or cushion is formed is laid on top of the coated rear face of the fabric and is then carried between the needle plates and the fabric.

As the fibrous material and the fabric pass beneath the needle plate, a series of barbed needles 1:2, which extend across the machine and are carried by a needle frame i9 are reciprocated vertically with respect to the fabric and the cushion. `On the downward stroke of the needles, the barbs f tia on the needles engage with and carry fibers of the rfibrous material downward. As a result, fibers `from the portion of the pad contacting the backing are forced at random through the coating and the woven backing material. Thus, the needling forms the cushion and at the same time, attaches the cushion to the pile fabric. in order to permit the pad or cushion to be stripped or delaminated from the pile fabric without difficulty, the penetration o-f the needles should lbe limited so that the fibers on which the needles act will extend as short a distance as possible beyond the front face of the woven backing material.

ln needling the cushion to the coated pile fabric in this manner, the needles of smaller diameter than the strands from which the backing material is woven should be used in order to prevent damage to the structure of the backing material. The baclrcoating has a tendency to hold the strands from which the backing material is woven in a fixed position during the needling operation and if the needles are of a larger diameter than the strands of the backing material, the strands may be completely severed if they happen to be struck by the needles. lf the strands of the backing are severed in this manner, it seriously weakens the carpeting and causes it to rip or tear easily.

A comparison of a suitable size of needle with a strand of the backing material is illustrated in FIG. 6. AS an example, a suitable arrangement in this respect is to use a No. 30 needle with l0 ounce, l5 x i3 weave burlap backing. lt should be noted in this connection, that in actual practice the spacing of the pile elements and the location of the fibers from the pad in relation to the baclcn@ may vary somewhat due to the manner in which a tufted product is made and the random manner in which the pad is attached thereto in accordance with the present invention.

ln accordance with the present invention, the pad can be attached to the pile fabric at the time it is formed without additional cost and the cost of a separate support or carrying member for the cushion is eliminated. In addition, separate handling of the cushion or padis also eliminated.

After the cushion has been attached to the pile fabric, its bottom surface may be finished by spraying it with a material such as water glass (silicate of soda) and then burnishing it with a smooth roll to prevent the pad from shedding heavily and to improve the feel or handle of the carpeting.

The cushioned carpeting described above is a laminated structure which comprises a pile fabric, a backcoating and a cushion or pad of fibrous material attached thereto in a manner which permits delamination of the cushion from the coated pile fabric. While the invention has been illustrated and described herein in conjunction with a tufted type of pile fabric, it will be understood that the present invention is equally applicable to other types of pile fabrics either with or without backcoatings.

It will also be understood that various modifications and changes may be made in the embodiment and practice of the invention illustrated and described herein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

We claim:

1. A cushioned carpet which comprises a pile fabric having a front face and a rear face with pile elements extending from the front face thereof; a backcoating of adhesive material applied to the rear face of the pile fabric; and a pad of fibrous material contacting with the baclrcoating on the rear face of the pile fabric, said fibrous pad having fibers extendin T through the backcoating and the pile fabric but not substantially beyond the front face thereof whereby the pad may be readily stripped from the baclrcoating.

2. A cushioned carpet comprising a pile fabric which includes a woven backing, said backing having a front face and a rear face with pile elements extending from the front face thereof, a coating of adhesive material applied to the rear face of the woven backing; and a pad of fibrous material extending over and contacting with the coated rear face of the backing, said pad including bers extending through the coating and interstices in the woven backing but not substantially beyond the front face of the backing whereby the pad is readily removable from the backing.

3. A cushioned carpet comprising a pile fabric which includes a loosely woven backing having a front face and a rear face and tufted pile elements extending from the front face of said backing; a thin coating of adhesive material applied to the rear face of the backing and binding the tufted pile elements thereto; and a pad of fibrous material removably attached to the coated rear face of the backing, said pad including fibers extending through said coating and interstices in the loosely woven backing but not substantially beyond the front face of the backing.

4. A cushioned carpet at defined in claim 3 wherein the adhesive material forming the coating is fiexible and rubbery.

5. in a cushioned carpet comprising a pile fabric which includes a loosely woven backing having a front face and a rear face with tufted pile elements extending from the front face thereof and a thin coating of adhesive material applied to the rear face of the backing and binding the tufted pile elements thereto, the improvement which comprises a pad of fibrous material removably attached to the coated rear face of the backing, said pad including fibers extending through said coating and interstices in the loosely Woven backing but not substantially beyond the front face of the backing.

6. The method of removably attaching a cushioning layer of fibrous material to the back of a pile carpet having a backing element with pile elements extending from the front face thereof and a backcoating applied to the back thereof, which comprises forcing fibers from a layer of fibrous material in contact with the back of the carpet through the backcoating and the backing by means of barbed needles with the movement of said needles beingl restricted so that said bers extend only a relatively short distance beyond the front face of the backing and do not support the pile elements.

7. In a method of removably attaching a cushioning layer of fibrous material to the back of tufted carpeting having a Woven backing with pile elements extending from the front thereof and a backcoating adhered to the back thereof, the improvement which comprises forcing fibers from a layer of fibrous material in contact with the back ofthe carpeting through the backcoating and the baci:- ing but not substantially beyond the base of pile elements.

8. In a method of removably attaching a cushioning layer of fibrous material to the back of tufted carpeting having a backing formed of woven strands with pile elements extending from the front thereof and a backcoating adhered to the back thereof, the improvement which comprises forcing fibers from the layer of brous material through the backcoating and the backing by means of barbed needles with the movement of said needles being restricted so as not to carry said fibers beyond the base of the pile elements extending from the front of the backing, said needles being smaller in diameter than the strands forming the backing whereby said strands Will not be severed by movement of the needles through the backing.

9. In a cushioned carpet of the type having pile elements carried by a backing formed from woven strands, movable from said openings upon separation of the pad said pile elements extending from one face of the backing from the backing. and a cushioning pad of fibrous material extending over and being removably attached to the other face of the References Cited in the le of this patent backing, the improvement which comprises fibers from 5 the pad extending through the backing and terminating UNITED STATES PATENTS adjacent the base of the pile elements carried thereon, 1,816,574 Foster et ai. J'uly 28, 1931 said pile elements passing through openings in the back- 2,706,324 Cogovan Apr. 19, 1955 ing without severing the strands thereof and being re- 2,810,950 Rice Oct. 29, 1957 

